Chapter 164 – Black Lotus Twelve Earthly Branches, Land of the Four Fiends in the Shanhai Realm

“This is the map of the Mountains-Seas Realm, keep it safe.”

“Although most Classic of Mountains and Seas Mythical Beasts won’t attack you due to the Mountains and Seas Scroll, there are always exceptions. It’s best not to approach certain special areas.”

“Because those places seal some Mountain and Sea Vicious Beasts, and they won’t care whether you’re from the Shanhai Bureau or not.”

“Additionally, the Mountains-Seas Realm opens every three months, and tomorrow happens to be the opening time for this cycle.”

“If you miss tomorrow’s opening, you’ll have to wait for the next Mountains-Seas Realm opening.”

“So unless absolutely necessary, you’d better not wander too far from the Two Realms Sumeru today, otherwise you might miss the timing.”

“Finally, this is the Classic of Mountains and Seas Bestiary, which records the Mountain and Sea mythical beasts currently discovered by our bureau, including their appearances, abilities, destinies, and their frequent locations.”

“Though I might be stating the obvious, I must remind you not to rashly pursue those high-destiny mythical beasts recorded in the bestiary.”

“Many of them dislike being controlled, preferring to live alone in the Mountains-Seas Realm rather than forming contracts with Agents.”

“So it’s best to act within your capabilities when searching for Mountain and Sea mythical beasts. When you encounter a suitable one, don’t hesitate – even if its destiny is somewhat lower, it doesn’t matter.”

“After all, there isn’t much distinction of strength among Mountain and Sea mythical beasts. Each is born of heaven and earth, possessing its own unique destiny and abilities.”

“What suits others may not suit you. Compatibility is more important than high destiny.”

“Well then, do you have any other questions?”

Lu Chen looked at the Mountain and Sea Walker guarding the entrance to Xiaopenglai Immortal Island and the Mountains-Seas Realm gate, replying: “No, thank you for the reminders.”

Hearing this, the Mountain and Sea Walker smiled and said: “No problem, it’s my duty.”

“Remember tomorrow’s Mountains-Seas Realm opening time. If you miss it, you’ll have to wait another three months.”

“Alright.”

Lu Chen nodded, then turned and walked outward.

But just as Lu Chen stepped out of the Qingzhou Shanhai Division’s main gate, he suddenly sensed what seemed to be a gaze watching him from the shadows.

Without any hesitation, he immediately turned to look in the direction of the gaze.

Yet what met his eyes were only some ordinary Mountain and Sea Walkers, with nothing particularly unusual.

This immediately made Lu Chen frown.

Because since undergoing the enhancement in the ‘Dragon Transformation Pool’, all his five senses had significantly improved.

Coupled with the special talent of the ‘Fairy Lotus Womb’, Lu Chen had become quite sensitive to spiritual power and auras.

Therefore, Lu Chen was certain that for a moment just now, someone had definitely been watching him from the shadows.

And that gaze was certainly not well-intentioned.

Thinking this, Lu Chen silently headed toward his hotel on Xiaopenglai Immortal Island, pretending to leave.

Shortly after Lu Chen departed, a petite woman emerged from behind the doorframe.

She looked in the direction Lu Chen had left, inwardly astonished.

After all, her Buddha Mother’s blessing could reduce her presence to an astonishing degree.

Even Golden Core Stage cultivators wouldn’t notice her unless they already knew of her existence.She was confident she could slip away unnoticed right under the other party’s nose.

But for a fleeting moment, she had keenly sensed that Lu Chen seemed to have detected her presence.

If not for her quick reflexes and cautious decision to immediately hide, she might very well have been discovered by Lu Chen.

At this thought, her impression of Lu Chen grew even more profound.

Truly worthy of being our Holy Son—extraordinary indeed…

With this in mind, Rabbit immediately made a decision.

After entering the Mountains-Seas Realm this time, it would be best to prioritize completing the task assigned by the Leader.

After that, she could see if there was an opportunity to bring the Holy Son out of the Mountains-Seas Realm.

Just as Rabbit was pondering these thoughts, a voice came from behind her.

“Miss Chu, why are you here alone?”

“The Mountains-Seas Realm opens tomorrow. We were planning to gather our teammates to discuss our actions once we enter, but then we suddenly realized you were missing. We’ve been looking for you for a long time.”

Rabbit—Chu Xia turned around and saw a tall Mountain and Sea Walker.

She looked at him and immediately put on an innocent, harmless expression, rubbing her hands together apologetically as she said, “I’m sorry, I thought I saw someone I knew and ran out after them, but it turned out I was mistaken. My apologies.”

Seeing Chu Xia’s pitifully apologetic expression and her delicate, adorable face,

the Mountain and Sea Walker, Deng Liang, immediately swallowed the reprimanding words he had been about to say.

After all… cuteness is justice!

Fooled by Rabbit’s charming appearance, Deng Liang quickly turned his head away, not daring to look directly at her.

Clearing his throat twice, he pretended to be gentlemanly and said, “It’s fine. We just suddenly noticed you were gone and thought you might have gotten lost.”

“After all, the Mountains-Seas Realm is about to open, and everyone’s a bit on edge.”

“Since we’ve all just passed the Agent trials, we’re all hoping to contract a powerful Classic of Mountains and Seas Mythical Beast this time, so we’re unconsciously a bit impatient. You don’t need to apologize—no one blames you.”

“But you should come with me quickly now. Let’s not keep the others waiting.”

“Okay.”

Chu Xia nodded, then lowered her head and followed Deng Liang toward the Qingzhou headquarters cafeteria.

Not long after the two left, Lu Chen unusually turned back.

He arrived at the spot where Chu Xia and Deng Liang had been standing earlier and looked around suspiciously.

After confirming there was nothing unusual, he silently left.

Originally, after sensing that strange feeling of being watched earlier, he had deliberately stayed alert.

He had pretended to leave, planning to suddenly return and see if he could find the person secretly observing him.

But when he returned, he could no longer sense that eerie feeling.

Either the other party had already left, or he had been mistaken earlier.

An ordinary person might think they were overreacting,

but the cautious Lu Chen trusted his judgment.

He firmly believed that someone had definitely been watching him with ill intentions from the shadows.

Even though the Qingzhou Shanhai Division was a provincial headquarters, and most people who could appear here were core members of the Shanhai Bureau,

there shouldn’t be any Demonic Heresy present.

But it’s better to be safe than sorry—with an organization as large as the Shanhai Bureau, it wouldn’t be strange for someone with ulterior motives to slip through the cracks.

With this in mind, Lu Chen felt that before entering the Mountains-Seas Realm, he should perhaps make a few more preparations.After all, no one knows whether accidents or tomorrow will come first.

Being cautious never hurts.

Before leaving the Qingzhou Shanhai Bureau HQ, Lu Chen took a deep look around.

Then he turned and walked out.

There was still one day left before the opening of the Mountains-Seas Realm, and he could use this time to make more preparations.

For example… using the experience points he had accumulated for so long.

If he could comprehend another Harmony Realm Sword Intent before entering the Mountains-Seas Realm…

Even if he couldn’t quickly build a new Sword Formation based on that Sword Intent in the short term…

He could still enrich his attack methods.

Having one more technique would give him more confidence when facing unexpected situations.

Late at night, outside the Qingzhou Shanhai Division, in a hotel run by Penglai immortals.

After discussing matters about entering the Mountains-Seas Realm with several ‘friends’, Black Lotus Altar Lord – Rabbit – Chu Xia

returned alone to her room to rest.

But as soon as she entered the room, she immediately went to the bathroom.

Then she bit her finger and began drawing a special Formation on the bathroom mirror.

Next, she took out a mirror from her bosom.

The frame of this mirror was quite eerie, shaped like a naked, sorrowful woman embracing the circular mirror with both hands.

Similar to a mother holding her child.

Chu Xia looked at this mirror and dripped the blood from her finger onto it.

The next second, the sorrowful woman on the Mother-Child Mirror frame shed two streams of bloody tears.

After completing this, Chu Xia placed the Mother-Child Mirror on the bathroom vanity.

An eerie power emanated from the Mother-Child Mirror, eventually spreading to the bathroom mirror.

Soon, large amounts of blood flowed from the bathroom mirror, quickly covering the entire surface.

Chu Xia looked at the mirror and immediately placed her hand on it.

The next moment, everything went black before Chu Xia’s eyes.

When she opened her eyes again, she had arrived at an ancient courtyard.

In the center of the courtyard was a blood-red lotus pond, filled with blooming black lotuses.

Several people had already gathered around this pond.

“Rabbit, you’re late.”

Rabbit – Chu Xia turned her head – the speaker was a Black Lotus Altar Lord wearing an Ox mask.

Before Chu Xia could respond, a somewhat sharp voice came from nearby.

“Rabbit is a general personally assigned by the Leader to carry out special missions. How dare you, stupid Ox, blame her? Be careful she reports you to the Leader and makes things difficult for you later, hehehe…”

Hearing Rooster’s unpleasant voice, Ox’s deep voice snorted coldly: “Half-man, half-woman creature, do you think the Leader is as petty as you?”

“Petty? I am a chicken after all, what’s wrong with being petty, hehehe…”

Though he said this, the gaze beneath Rooster’s mask toward Ox was filled with killing intent.

Clearly, he had taken a grudge against Ox.

“Hahaha, arriving just in time to see the classic internal conflict scene. The Black Lotus Sect is truly a blessed land – I definitely came to the right place!”

“With you all here, our sect really has… a promising future!”

The group turned to see a man wearing a Monkey mask approaching the pond, looking with amusement at Ox and Rooster not far away.

Clearly enjoying the spectacle without worrying about the consequences.At the same time, several more figures emerged from the shadows.

Each of them wore masks symbolizing the Twelve Earthly Branches.

However, there were only eleven people present instead of the full twelve.

The eleven Black Lotus Altar Lords present all knew the reason for the absence.

It was because of Zi Shu, who had been slain by the Supreme Purity Dao Palace’s Broken Sword True Master.

In fact, Serpent of the Twelve Earthly Branches had also perished during the recent chaos in Luocheng.

But Serpent’s position had already been filled, while a suitable replacement for Zi Shu hadn’t been found yet, which was why only eleven members remained.

Even with one member missing, this didn’t affect the matter they had gathered to discuss.

“Is everyone here?”

Just as the others were about to speak, a cold voice came from within the pond.

Hearing this voice, the previously discordant Twelve Earthly Branches immediately fell silent.

Soon, everyone saw a black lotus bloom in the blood pond.

A child about six years old sat cross-legged atop the lotus.

Upon seeing his appearance, all those present immediately dropped to one knee.

“We respectfully welcome the Leader’s presence.”

The child-like Black Lotus Leader nodded calmly, then looked toward Rabbit not far away and said, “Rabbit, how is the task I assigned you progressing?”

Rabbit·Chu Xia replied respectfully, “Reporting to the Leader, I have already arrived at the Qingzhou Shanhai Bureau HQ and will soon enter the Mountains-Seas Realm.”

“As long as everything goes smoothly, we should at minimum be able to bring one of the Four Fiends out from the Mountains-Seas Realm.”

Hearing this, the Black Lotus Leader nodded with satisfaction, then reminded, “This expedition to the Mountains-Seas Realm is part of our sect’s thirty-year plan. There must be no mistakes.”

“As long as we can release one of the Four Fiends from the Mountains-Seas Realm, the day our sect dominates the Nine Provinces will not be far off.”

“Rabbit, I hope you won’t disappoint me.”

Rabbit·Chu Xia lowered her head earnestly and said, “Please rest assured, Leader. I guarantee the mission will be completed. However, I recently saw our Holy Son at the Shanhai Bureau, and I wonder…”

“Pay it no mind. You are currently no match for him. I will handle matters regarding the Holy Son personally. Don’t do anything unnecessary.”

Rabbit was startled, as she hadn’t expected the Leader to say she couldn’t defeat the Holy Son.

After all, though she used a secret technique to disguise her cultivation as the Foundation Establishment Stage,

she was actually a genuine Golden Core Stage cultivator.

Moreover, she had received three gifts from the Buddha Mother, making her far stronger than ordinary Golden Core Stage cultivators.

Yet the Leader claimed she was no match for the Holy Son, which made Rabbit somewhat unconvinced.

Because she knew perfectly well that Holy Son Lu Chen only had mere Foundation Establishment Stage cultivation.

How could a Golden Core Stage cultivator fail to easily handle someone at the Foundation Establishment Stage?

Perhaps concerned that Rabbit’s eagerness for merit might lead her to take unnecessary actions that could jeopardize the original plan,

the Black Lotus Leader explained, “Though the Holy Son is currently only at the Foundation Establishment Stage, he has not only stepped into the Harmony Realm but also has the support of that existence behind him. You are absolutely no match for him.”

“Rabbit, focus on your tasks after entering the Mountains-Seas Realm. Don’t be greedy for achievements.”

Hearing this, Rabbit fell silent.

As for whether she truly took this advice to heart, that remained unknown.After giving these instructions, the Black Lotus Sect Leader looked at the crowd and said, “The plan has now reached a critical stage. Regardless of what tasks you currently have at hand, set them all aside immediately.”

“Once Rabbit arrives at the Four Fiends’ territory, he will activate the teleportation array, allowing you to smoothly enter the Mountains-Seas Realm.”

“By then, some members of the Shanhai Bureau will undoubtedly react and forcibly open the Mountains-Seas Realm.”

“However, opening the Mountains-Seas Realm repeatedly within a short period requires coordination from multiple Penglai Immortal Islands, so approximately seven days of preparation will be needed.”

“Therefore, after alerting the Shanhai Bureau, you will have a full seven days to break the Four Fiends’ Seals.”

“Fortunately, the Shanhai Bureau and the Mountains-Seas Realm have an agreement: only Cultivators at the Golden Core Stage or below, or Guardians who have fully mastered the fate of exotic beasts, are permitted to enter.”

“Thus, the guardians of the Four Fiends’ territory will only be Scripture Masters at the Golden Core Stage, and they are the ones you must deal with this time.”

“I don’t care what methods you use—I expect you to bring at least one of the Four Fiends’ exotic beasts out from the Shanhai Bureau.”

“As long as we have even one Four Fiends’ exotic beast, our sect’s ‘Great Dark Heaven’ can begin implementation.”

“So this plan must succeed—failure is not an option. Understood?”

Hearing this, the Twelve Earthly Branches nodded in unison, expressing their commitment to completing the mission.

After all, their Black Lotus Sect had invested tremendous effort into this operation.

If this mission failed, there would be no second chance.

Because after this incident, the Shanhai Bureau would certainly take precautions and strictly screen Cultivators attempting to enter the Mountains-Seas Realm.

By then, even Black Lotus Sect Cultivators like Rabbit, who possess special means, would find it difficult to deceive the Shanhai Bureau’s Dharma Eye.

That is why the Black Lotus Sect Leader insisted that this plan must succeed without fail.

Moreover, the Four Fiends are extraordinary—not only are their abilities unique, but their temperaments are extremely savage.

Even if the Twelve Earthly Branches release them, there’s no guarantee the Fiends will obediently follow.

Therefore, besides dealing with the original guardians of the Four Fiends’ territory, they may also need to confront the powerful Four Fiends’ exotic beasts.

Though these beasts have been sealed for thousands of years and their power has significantly weakened, they are still not opponents ordinary Cultivators can handle.

At minimum, three or more members of the Twelve Earthly Branches must join forces to subdue one.

Originally, if Mouse hadn’t been killed by the Broken Sword Real Person, their chances of success would have been quite high.

But due to Mouse’s absence, one of the Four Fiends’ territories can only be assigned two members of the Twelve Earthly Branches.

Fortunately, Dragon and Tiger among the Twelve Earthly Branches are exceptionally powerful.

Relying solely on these two, they should still be able to successfully release one Four Fiends’ exotic beast.

Thus, barring unforeseen circumstances, their plan should proceed smoothly.

At the very worst, they should be able to extract one Four Fiends’ exotic beast from the Mountains-Seas Realm.

Yet for some reason, the Black Lotus Sect Leader harbored an uneasy premonition about this operation.

Because Lu Chen’s appearance in the Mountains-Seas Realm was far too coincidental.

Generally, aside from the Four Fiends’ territory—which is perpetually guarded by four Scripture Masters—other entry points are only protected by ordinary Mountain and Sea Walkers.

After all, Scripture Masters represent mid-to-high-level strength within the Shanhai Bureau.

Deploying too many Scripture Masters in the Mountains-Seas Realm would undoubtedly be a massive waste of resources.Not to mention that cultivators who typically enter the Mountains-Seas Realm are generally at the Foundation Establishment Stage.

Moreover, a Guardian forming a second contract with a Classic of Mountains and Seas Mythical Beast is a situation that occurs once in a thousand years.

Regarding this, the Black Lotus Sect Leader had already conducted prior investigations.

Currently, all seven Guardians of the Shanhai Bureau had long completed their second contracts with Classic of Mountains and Seas Mythical Beasts and would not enter the Mountains-Seas Realm.

Meanwhile, the two vacant Guardian positions had not been filled in the short term.

Therefore, they only needed to consider this batch of Agents entering the Mountains-Seas Realm, along with the four Scripture Masters guarding the Four Fiends’ Seals.

Thus, theoretically speaking, they only needed to deal with four Golden Core Stage cultivators.

With the strength of the Twelve Earthly Branches, normally just three of them working together could reliably subdue a Golden Core Stage Scripture Master.

However, Lu Chen’s appearance undoubtedly somewhat disrupted this balance.

Although Lu Chen was only at the Foundation Establishment Stage.

Both his Dao Integration Realm Sword Intent and the power lent to him by that Gu Xian made him an anomaly among Foundation Establishment cultivators, necessitating treatment as a Golden Core Stage cultivator.

If possible, he would have preferred to wait until Lu Chen left the Mountains-Seas Realm before having Rabbit and the others begin their operation.

But he had gone to great lengths to secure Rabbit’s opportunity to enter the Mountains-Seas Realm and had set up the formation capable of crossing between realms.

After all, formations capable of Transmigration between two realms weren’t something that could be arranged at will.

Not to mention that for safety reasons, the Black Lotus Sect Leader had specifically designed these formations with time limits—they would automatically destroy themselves after exceeding the allotted time.

This was to prevent the Shanhai Bureau from following clues afterward to trace their whereabouts.

Therefore, if they missed this opportunity.

Whether there would be another such favorable timing for action was uncertain.

Moreover, his other plans also required the assistance of these Four Fiends.

It could be said that pulling one hair could move the whole body.

Thinking this, the Black Lotus Sect Leader simply stopped pondering these matters.

After all, plans could never keep up with changes. Rather than hesitating and overthinking, it was better to focus on the present.

Besides, the Four Fiends’ locations were far apart from each other. Even if Holy Son Lu Chen unexpectedly got involved, he could at most affect the plan at one of the Four Fiends’ locations, with little impact on the overall situation.

Thus, they didn’t need to release all Four Fiends—as long as they could ensure one was brought out, that would suffice.

There was a certain degree of tolerance for error.

With this in mind, the Black Lotus Sect Leader immediately said, “Alright, that’s all regarding the Four Fiends. Return and make preparations.”

“Yes.”

As the secret meeting concluded, Chu Xia’s Divine Soul returned to her body.

She took the mother-child mirror from the bathroom counter and turned to leave the restroom.

Once free from the mirror’s influence, the entire bathroom quickly returned to normal, completely devoid of the earlier eeriness of the blood-stained mirror stand, as if nothing had happened at all…

The next day, at the Qingzhou Shanhai Bureau HQ, Mountains-Seas Realm entrance.

“Little Lu, why didn’t you wait for me? You were going to the Mountains-Seas Realm by yourself!”

Lu Chen looked at Mu Xiaoye, who had reached the Foundation Establishment Stage, and replied, “The Mountains-Seas Realm opens every three months. I thought you wouldn’t make it this time.”

Mu Xiaoye placed her hands on her hips confidently and said, “This Young Miss is a genius. Something as simple as a Breakthrough doesn’t require much time.”

“Enough about that, Little Lu. Have you decided which Classic of Mountains and Seas Mythical Beast you want to find?”Lu Chen nodded. He had long prepared a plan for the mythical beast from the Classic of Mountains and Seas he would contract this time.

However, Lu Chen wouldn’t stubbornly focus on just one mythical beast from the Classic of Mountains and Seas.

Everything would depend on the actual situation when he entered the Mountains-Seas Realm.

After all, plans can never keep up with changes.

Just as Lu Chen and Mu Xiaoye were chatting idly, the Two Realms Gate symbolizing the Mountains-Seas Realm… opened not far away.

(End of Chapter)